


ashen sky, lightning storms

by everythingFangirl



Series: so call me when the world looks bleak (dream smp oneshots) [7]
Category: Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Ambiguous/Open Ending, Betrayal, Friendship, Gen, Reunions, hoke boy I hope you're reading this fucker, no clue how I got here, self indulgent garbage part 23423, what a cast huh
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-09
Updated: 2020-11-09
Packaged: 2021-03-09 02:28:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,128
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27477286
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/everythingFangirl/pseuds/everythingFangirl
Summary: I've done this many times before youWatch the pattern take formChildren your time is doneIf you say it's done togetherPogtopia thought Manberg was outnumbered. But Schlatt has other plans.
Relationships: Get outta here, Minx | JustAMinx & Niki | Nihachu, No Romantic Relationship(s), Toby Smith | Tubbo & TommyInnit, TommyInnit & Phil Watson (Video Blogging RPF)
Series: so call me when the world looks bleak (dream smp oneshots) [7]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1966438
Comments: 35
Kudos: 170
Collections: Dream SMP Connected Storylines





	ashen sky, lightning storms

**Author's Note:**

> ~~what the hell kind of self-indulgent crossover,~~
> 
> This is a direct follow-up to the previous work in this series, "(tell me whose side) you're on", which you might want to read first for some context. In summary, though, Charlie Slimecicle joins the Dream SMP and promptly begins to cause chaos.
> 
> Title and description quotes are from the song Watershed by Vienna Tang (thank you Ghet!)

Slimecicle’s arrival had thrown the whole server into chaos. 

If only Tubbo knew that was just the beginning. 

~

Days later, with Pogtopia still reeling from the events that had taken place, Tubbo is walking through the tunnel from Manberg to the ravine when a voice echoes against the stone.

“Hey, Wilbur.”

Tubbo freezes, only for a moment, before darting to one side and pressing himself against the wall. He doesn’t recognize the voice. Who is it, did they see him, are they a threat, are -

“What - you - since when are you here?”

That’s Wilbur. Tubbo allows themself to relax, just a little, and listen.

“Just arrived last night.”

“Oh. Oh!” Tubbo can hear the smile in Wilbur’s voice, and his relief is almost palpable. “Connor, it’s so good to see you, you have no idea! This is perfect, you can join us, we’ll need all the help we can get against Schlatt and Dream -”

There’s no emotion in the stranger’s - Connor’s - voice, no sign that he reciprocates Wilbur’s joy. No sign that he really cares at all. “Actually, I’m here for Schlatt.” 

“What? You -” Wilbur exclaims, but cuts himself off. When he speaks again, his shock is replaced with nothing but cold spite. “Oh, I see how it is. Of course. You’re back to being his loyal little lackey, as usual. What, is Ty here as well, now? Did Schlatt finally get a replacement for little intern Tubbo? Are you bringing that kid into this mess too?”

“You’re one to talk about bringing kids into your wars. No, Ty’s not here, and no, I’m not Schlatt’s lackey. I’m his Vice President,” Connor spits.

Schlatt’s already replaced Quackity. Tubbo’s barely even surprised by the speed at which he did.

Wilbur laughs. That mad, chaotic laugh that still sends chills down Tubbo’s spine, the kind they’ve come to associate with nothing but destruction. “Then why the fuck are you here, Connor? Are you here to gloat? Because if you’re here as a spy, it might not have been the smartest move to just blow your cover.”

“Actually, I’m here to ask you to surrender.”

Wilbur’s laughter cuts off. The silence echoes.

“...What?”

“Listen, Wilbur, I’m trying to make some changes in Manberg.” For the first time, Tubbo can sense passion in Connor’s voice, even a hint of desperation. “I’m trying to take the country in a better direction, but this war isn’t gonna help that. It’s just gonna cause chaos for both sides, nothing good’s gonna come of it. If you surrender and agree to let Schlatt and I take charge, we could be done with this and I could help you out, we could make a better future for Manb-”

“You really think that’s going to convince me?” Wilbur snaps back, suddenly furious. “Fuck off, Connor. Get out of here and run back home to Schlatt.”

More silence. When Connor speaks again, his voice is back to nothing but ice. “Maybe I will. Goodbye, Wilbur.”

Footsteps echo, then stop again, just for a moment. 

“I wish I could say it was nice to see you again.”

Tubbo can almost breathe again when the man appears from around a corner, walking leisurely back towards Manberg. There’s nothing out of the ordinary about him, really… except the perfectly fitted suit he’s wearing, accented with a purple tie. Just for a moment, Tubbo feels the phantom of a matching green one around his own neck. 

Connor glances towards them only once as he passes, but his eyes drift over them quickly. As if they weren’t even worth his notice. 

He’s already past them and almost out of sight when his voice echoes back towards Tubbo. 

“Make sure you’re choosing the right side, kid.”

He sounds… remorseful. Tired, even. 

Connor disappears down the tunnel, and Tubbo’s left to wonder what, exactly, he just overheard.

~

Later still, Tubbo’s tending to a patch of farmland with Niki near her bakery. They’re carrying on a quiet conversation about anything but current events, Tubbo finding talking to Niki just as pleasant as usual. She’s more worn, more hardened than she had been when Tubbo first met her, but then again, they all are. Her smile’s a tired one, but still warm. 

Then a figure appears over a hillside.

“Niki!”

She shoots upright at the sound of that voice. Yet another unfamiliar one to Tubbo, but not to Niki, it seems, as she desperately scans their surroundings until her eyes land on the pink-haired woman grinning down at them -

“Minx!”

The newcomer barrels down the hill at the same moment as Niki shoots towards her, work completely forgotten behind her. The two nearly crash into a hug, and Tubbo can hear their wild laughter as the taller woman picks Niki up and spins her around like she weighs nothing. When they split apart, Tubbo can see they’re both grinning, Niki unabashedly in a way that Tubbo hasn’t seen since before the election, and the other - Minx - with teeth just a little too sharp to be fully human. It’s as if they’ve forgotten the rest of the world - and Tubbo - completely.

“It’s been so long!” Niki exclaims, voice brimming with joy. “I didn’t expect to see you here, how are you?”

“I’m doing good! You look like shit, though, is everything okay?”

Niki giggles, but it fades all too quickly, her voice turning more sombre when she speaks again. “No, not exactly. Things haven’t been easy recently, but… I’m already feeling better since you’re here!” She laughs again, quietly, only for a moment. Reality settles back over her brief moment of joy. “I’m worried about this war, but I hope things will be alright.”

Minx is silent for a moment, looking bewildered. “War? What are you talking about?”

“You don’t know about the war?”

“Well, nobody fucking told me! I guess Schlatt just expects me to sit around and look pretty, the cunt.”

The shocked silence slams down between them like a physical wall. 

Oh, shit.

“Wait, you’re with Schlatt?”

“Yeah? He’s the one that invited me here. Asked me to be the First Lady of Manberg, which apparently isn’t enough to tell me that there’s a whole fucking war going on.” Niki’s face visibly falls, and Tubbo feels a pang of pity in his heart in response. “...Is that bad?”

“Oh! N-no, not at all. I’m happy for you, it’s just… well, Schlatt’s the person we’ve been fighting.”

“Oh. Well, shit.” There’s an awkward pause, both women looking downcast. When Minx speaks up again, the cheer in her voice seems forced. “But, why don’t you come with me, then? I’m sure Schlatt wouldn’t mind, we can find a place for you, you can be on our side-”

“I… I don’t think I can do that, Minx. I’m sorry.”

Niki’s voice is remorseful, but resolute. Minx just looks sad.

“...Oh. That’s okay. I’m sure it’ll work out somehow, right?”

“Yeah. I hope so, too.”

Suddenly, the sound of a communicator rings. Minx pulls hers out of her pocket and scrolls through it, almost as if grateful for the interruption. “Fuck, it’s Charlie, I have to go. Gonna force him to explain what the fuck is going on here.” She glances back up from her communicator, something like desperation flashing in her eyes for just a second. “I’ll see you around, Niki?”

“Yeah.” Niki pauses for a moment, voice wavering. “Stay safe, Minx.”

“You too.”

When Minx disappears back over the hill, Niki stares after her long after she’s gone.

~

“Knock!”

The muffled voice sounds from the other side of Pogtopia’s original dirt entrance. Tubbo sighs. They’re getting tired of being surprised by voices they don’t recognize.

“Who’s there?”

“Can I talk to you?”

Another one of Schlatt’s new recruits, probably. Tubbo’s already preparing to turn away and walk back down the steps. “You can’t come in.”

He’s almost out of hearing range when he hears the hesitant response. “...We haves cookies?”

Tubbo bursts out laughing out of sheer confusion. “What?” 

He knows he shouldn’t, but… that’s enough to at least pique his curiosity. Tubbo turns back, against his better judgement, and digs out some of the dirt entrance to take a look at the person on the other side. A short dog-eared hybrid, smiling at them. 

“Hi!”

“Hello… what was that?”

The stranger just shrugs. “It’s worked before.”

For some time, they just stand there, staring at each other. At some point, Tubbo starts to realize that this might be getting a little awkward, and since he’s already stood here for so long… might as well. He steps outside and seals up the entrance behind him. 

“You said you wanted to talk to me? Who are you?”

“I’m Travis. And you’re Tubbo.”

“I am. Are you with Schlatt?”

“Yeah, I am.” The newcomer - Travis - gestures forward, and, with not much better to do, Tubbo follows him as he starts to walk through the woods. “You used to work with Schlatt, right?”

“Well, to be honest I was mostly just spying on him.”

Travis laughs, maybe a little harder than the situation warrants. “Yeah, I heard about that. I’ve known Schlatt for a while. He’s not a bad guy, though.”

Now it’s Tubbo’s turn to laugh. “What do you mean? He turned our country into a dictatorship and literally ordered my public execution.”

“He did win the election, though. And, to be fair, you were spying on him.”

“That’s… I guess I can’t argue with that.” 

Travis laughs again, and Tubbo smiles with him. Just like with Charlie, he finds himself falling into the pattern of starting to like the guy. Out of Schlatt’s little entourage, he does seem to be the most… tame, so far. 

“Well, Schlatt says you’re a smart guy. He said he can give you another chance to work with us, if you want to.”

And there it is. Just like with Connor and Wilbur, just like with Minx and Niki, he’s asking Tubbo to join their side. He had a feeling this might happen.

“Why would I ever go back to Schlatt?”

“If you don’t want to lose.” 

The casual, cheerful way Travis delivers that ultimatum is almost chilling. If his entire demeanor didn’t suggest otherwise, that might almost be a threat.

“I’m sorry, but I can’t betray Wilbur -” 

No, that’s not quite right, is it? 

“I can’t betray Tommy.”

Travis smiles at them. “Well, maybe you don’t have to.”

“What -”

But then there’s suddenly a man sitting in a tree branch above them.

“Travis!” Charlie exclaims, before he spots Tubbo next to him. “Oh, hey Tubbo!”

The man’s voice is cheerful, but Tubbo can’t help but remember the wild laughter he’d heard on the day that - that -

“Hi,” he manages to stutter out.

Charlie turns back to Travis without further ado. “Listen, Trav, we gotta go. Schlatt’s called that meeting, remember?”

“Oh, yeah, sorry Charlie!” Travis turns back to Tubbo for a moment, still smiling. “I have to go, but think about what I said, okay?”

The pair disappear before Tubbo can muster an answer. 

He walks back to Pogtopia, still in a bit of a daze. Making the way down the steps to the ravine, he hears the echoes of a conversation, but they fade out as he comes into view.

“Hey, Tubbo!” Tommy greets him. “Where have you been?”

Tubbo sinks into a seat, accepting yet another baked potato from Techno. “I met another one of those new players again.” They take a bite of food and swallow it before continuing. “He said his name was Travis.” Tubbo’s eyes inadvertantly travel to Wilbur.

“Traves, huh?” Tubbo doesn’t question Wilbur’s strange pronounciation as he starts to chuckle bitterly. “Oh, Travis, Travis. Of course he’s here, why wouldn’t he be?”

“Let’s just hope cscoop isn’t here too,” Techno mutters.

“Wait, cscoop?” Tommy chimes in. “Isn’t that the guy we met a while back who tried to attack me and then sicced his guard dog on me?” 

“That ‘guard dog’ _was_ traves, Tommy.” Wilbur corrects. “But, Techno, how do _you_ know who they are?”

“Wil, you remember MCM, right? Those two were the first team to ever beat me. I’m pretty sure it was through some combination of luck and the power of friendship, but they did. If they’re both here, they might actually pose some semblance of a threat.”

“Oh, they might be a threat!” Wilbur suddenly exclaims, wildly. “Oh, we better hope it’s not both of them then! If Schlatt’s got two furries on his team, he might actually stand some chance of beating us, and we can’t let _that_ happen, can we?”

“Wilbur -” Tommy tries to interject.

“You know, I thought we had the lead here! I really thought we did. I thought it was just gonna be Dream and Schlatt against the world. But then what happened? Who are all these people? _What the fuck is going on?_ ”

That final shout echoes across the ravine long after Wilbur’s voice has faded. 

Tubbo finds they truly can’t answer. 

~

The server that used to feel so much like home to Tubbo is being overrun by strangers. For all he knows, Schlatt’s power is growing by the day, while Pogtopia only gets weaker even as they scramble to make up for their enemy’s growing power. Charlie, Connor, Minx, Travis… How long is this going to last? By the time the day of the final battle arrives, will they even stand a chance against Manberg’s forces?

The thoughts swirling around Tubbo’s mind screech to a halt when he realizes he’s lost Tommy in the middle of the woods. 

(The skies are turning gray. In the distance, thunder rumbles.)

He glances around for the red shirt, the head of blond hair, that had been by his side just a moment ago. Nothing. 

Instead, he hears a voice behind him. This time, it’s one he recognizes all too well. 

“Hey, Tubbo!”

Schlatt’s leaning casually against a tree, looking - well. Looking healthier, happier, more relaxed, better than Tubbo’s ever seen him. 

“Long time, no see, buddy,” he continues, as if they’d ran into each other on the street rather than meeting for the first time since one ordered the other’s execution. “Have you met Travis yet?”

“I did.” Tubbo carefully takes a step back, tightening their grip on their axe.

“I had a feeling you two might get along.” He stands up straight and strides forward, easily closing the distance between them. “So, what do you say, T-money?” 

Schlatt holds out a hand, grinning. 

“You ready to come back to the winning side?”

“...Tubbo?”

The sound of Tommy’s voice feels like a gunshot. 

And it breaks Tubbo’s heart to realize that, just for a fraction of a second, they were actually considering the offer. 

But not anymore. Not when they look back and see Tommy staring out from the trees, gaze flitting between them and Schlatt, expression some mixture of confused, enraged, and heartbroken.

Schlatt only laughs. “Tommy! Just the man I wanted to see. We’re kind of in the middle of something here, but I can talk to you once we’re done. So, Tubbo,” His gaze snaps back, any hint of merriment gone from his voice. “Answer the question.”

Tubbo clutches onto their axe like a lifeline. They hear Tommy’s footsteps behind them, glance back just for a moment. 

He’s made his choice. 

“No. I’m not leaving Pogtopia, Schlatt.”

“That’s a shame.” Schlatt withdraws his hand, once again smirking. “See, I’m trying to assemble a cabinet that I can actually rely on. Obviously I can’t fucking trust anyone that actually lives here, so I took the liberty of inviting some friends over. Dream was kind enough to let them all in, as per our little… agreement.”

“Why are you here right now, Schlatt?” Tommy interjects, now standing next to Tubbo. Their eyes meet for half a second, understanding passing between them, before both look back towards the man in front of them. “Why would you want to talk to me?”

“Oh, I have someone I thought you might want to meet, Tommy.” Schlatt’s smirk spreads into a menacing grin.

“Who? Listen, I have no idea who any of these new people are, you can’t just use them to -”

“Oh, I don’t think that’s true.”

A shadow passes over their heads, fleetingly. A bird, nothing but a very large bird, or, or -

Someone lands behind them. Footsteps, and the rustling of wings.

“Hey, Tommy. Hey Tubbo.”

Tubbo feels his breath hitch, sees Tommy’s eyes widen in disbelief. They turn, slowly, almost scared of what they’ll see - even if, deep down, Tubbo already knows. 

Green. Blond hair. Kind eyes.

Tommy’s voice is almost inaudible. “Phil?”

Phil smiles. “It’s good to see you.”

“Phil? You’re - you’re here? You’re with Schlatt?”

He shrugs. “He invited me.”

“Wh - I -” Tommy sputters. “We invited you too! A lot! And you always said you couldn’t, or Dream wouldn’t let you in, or -”

“That’s not a problem for me anymore,” Schlatt cuts in, smug smile on his face.

“Shut the fuck up!” Tommy spits, before his voice turns desperate again. “Phil, why are you with _him?_ He’s the bad guy!”

Phil looks at them with something like pity. “This war isn’t going to end well, Tommy, no matter what happens. I just want you all to be safe.” He reaches out a hand, a painful mirror of Schlatt himself just moments before, and Tubbo feels a dizzying mixture of despair, rage, and sheer, bone-deep exhaustion tugging at his gut. “Come with me, and this can all be over.”

“Phil, no!” Tommy’s almost shouting now. “You don’t understand, we can’t just -”

“You’re putting yourselves in danger by trying to fight back. Do you think you can still win?”

“Not if you’re betraying us!”

“I don’t want to leave you behind. I just want to help you.”

Tommy stares for a moment, muttering something incomprehensible, before a sword drops out of his inventory into his waiting hand.

Tubbo throws out an arm in front of him. “Tommy, don’t-”

“Shut up, Tubbo!” Tommy pushes their arm away, but his grip on his sword is shaking. “Phil, please.”

“Just think about it.” Phil’s hand is still outstretched. “Promise me you’ll think about it.”

But Tommy’s taking a step back, any resolve gone, eyes still widened in disbelief. Shaking his head, almost imperceptibly. 

With a sigh, Phil unfurls his wings behind him, a gust of air shooting towards them -

And just like that, he’s disappeared back into the sky. Gone. 

Charlie’s laughter rings through the forest, just for a second. When Tubbo looks back, Schlatt’s gone too. 

Tommy’s still staring at the spot where Phil was standing. His sword clatters to the ground.

Hesitantly, Tubbo moves their hand to touch his shoulder. “Tommy?”

He doesn’t respond.

(It starts to rain.)

**Author's Note:**

> This went from "hey what if dream smp but charlie slimecicle" to "hey what if dream smp but charlie slimecicle and also connor eatspants and also justa minx and also travis traves and also philza minecraft" and I have no idea how I got here but here you fucking go I guess


End file.
